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Quest:Grandarm Coppice Cellar
must be completed first. |Diff = Most difficult battle is 9+ at MR 85, but high SP and NV pools are recommended (see Tips). |AS&P = true |Notes = Significant XP amounts to general and Necromancy possible }} General Information You return to Redglen only to find Vurth troubled by some puzzling, mysterious happenings in one of his cellars. Tips * Avoid the guardian glyph, don't persist in trying to get past it before setting the 3 Stone Fragments into the heavy tome's cover: the glyph drains your stamina (97 to 189 SP damages recorded), and you are repulsed to where you started. * Be prepared to take some serious damage from the three etched skulls (single blasts of 2 to 158 SP observed), and heal, in order to reap maximum experience rewards. * Bring along your , if you think you might need it (can't hurt to do so: might save your character, and you from retrying after your save is reloaded following your character's demise). You could equip the Hale Blade and fight the foes whose combat difficulty doesn't require a more powerful weapon, especially if NV is at a premium -- you'll need your Nevernal Reserve for those etched skulls in the final stages of this quest. * Would be a sane idea to exit all the way to Redglen and save before grabbing the fourth and final Stone Amulet Fragment into the cover of the heavy tome (after doing so, your exit is blocked by three powerful foes -- see walkthrough section below). * All enemies are undead. You can heal between each successive round, cast Restoration any time, whenever necessary (you could even consume a or , if you must). Prerequisites As this is a follow-up, must be completed beforehand. Maps Text Directions (N = North, E = East, S = South, W = West) Cellar (first, upper level) * Starting point in the exact centre of the map. * Straightforward map, square-shaped perimeter, except for indentation of one unit at each of the four (NW, NE, SE, SW) corners. * Five units to a side, then the indent (one step towards centre, then one step out to reach the next adjacent side). * Centre of map connected to midpoint of three outer walls (N, E, and S) by corridors 3 units long (3N, 3E, 3S). * (From starting spot, entrance to tunnel leading to cave on the lower level is 1W, but player is led there automatically after defeating a foe. Lower level not accessible before that event.) Cave (second, lower level) *From the entrance to Stone Amulet Fragment #1: * 2S, 1W * Continuing to Fragment #2 from the first one: * 1W, 1S, 2W, 2N, 2W, 1S, 1W * Continuing from Fragment #2 to #3 (the chamber in the NW corner): * 2W, 6N, 1E, 1N * With 3 Stone Fragments, head to the tome; from outside (south of) the chamber: * 2E, 2S, 1E * Continuing from the tome to the guardian glyph: * 1E, 1S, 2E * Continuing from the glyph to the remains (the journal and Fragment #4): * 1N, 1E, 2N, 1W (from here to collapsed tunnel: 1N) * From remains back to the tome: * 1E, 2S, 1W, 1S, 2W, 1N, 1W * From the tome to the westernmost skull on the north wall: * 1W, 3N (then 1E for each of the next two skulls) * From final (easternmost) skull on the north wall to the entrance: * 4S,1E, 3S, 2E, 2N If you'd like to exit in order to rest and save in Redglen before tackling the etched skulls: *From heavy tome to entrance/exit: * 1E, 1S, 1E, 3S, 2E, 2N * From the entrance to the heavy tome: * 2S, 2W, 3N, 1W, 1N, 1W * From easternmost (closest to exit) etched skull to exit: * 4S, 1E, 3S, 2E, 2N * From entrance back to closest skull: * 2S, 2E, 3N, 1E, 4N Walkthrough *Talk to Vurth Grandarm, agree to help him, and descend into the cellar. He gives you a so you can exit as needed. Cellar *Defeat nine roaming , then the . *Follow this Robed Corpse when he rises and flees. Follow the story: you'll squeeze through the fissure you discover into the tunnel beyond, and find yourself at the first square of the cave's map. Note: you can return right away to the cellar above and to the SAFE spot in Redglen, where you can rest and save, if you wish, or need to. Once accessed, you can leave the cave and return to it any time (before getting the fourth amulet fragment). Cave * Begin making your way through this map, collecting the first two Stone Amulet Fragments (F1, F2) and slaying any further wandering that confront you (same type foe with same 3-4 XP combat reward as in the cellar above). * When encountered, defeat the (referred to in the game text as "armoured skeleton"). You can get rid of him by using Necromancy (60+) 64 specific XP (the option of fleeing immediately is also provided). Necromancy used to give 64 XP to to all Powers here, but that was apparently a bug which has now been fixed. * Continue to the north-western chamber (the alcove marked C'), where you'll discover some gruesome remains. Get ready to be attacked by the first of seven . * Afterwards, you'll need to roll a , and defeat the combined forces of those who just assailed you using some ancient dark magic: . * You acquire the third Stone Amulet Fragment from them, and you'll need avoid a sneak attack by way of another , then fight the risen on your way out. * With the 3 Stone Amulet Fragments in your possession, go set them into the circular impression on the cover of the heavy leather-bound tome in a connecting passage towards the centre of the cave ('T), while examining it (64 xp reward to general per fragment, 192 XP for these first three). Note 1: this is the time to exit and rest, replenish, save, if you need it -- before obtaining the last stone fragment. Afterwards, if attempting to leave, you'll run into , susceptible to damage by random weapon special effects, FoD, WoD}}. The special properties of the axe work as intended since these are undead, but killing them only directs you to the same section you would've entered if you had fled. Other strategies are of no help against these and you may have to flee to heal quite a few times before the random automatic kill comes. The XP reward is very small for such a difficult fight, so there are much better uses for your time, QS heals and NV. The game gives a warning, and you can retreat before you face them, but once the pre-combat screen appears, you must engage them and strike that one hit before fleeing. Note 2: each skull etching of the northern passage that crumbles to dust takes away with it one of these 3 Skeletal Warriors. However, defeating whatever remains is not made at all easier: whether you battle three, two, or a single one, they remain scaled at 14+ to hit, and their stamina pool is unchanged at 15,000 SP. * Having set the first three fragments into the tome's cover, proceed east towards the guardian glyph (G''') and safely go past it (you'll now be able to pass without taking damage). Make your discoveries in this newly opened passage and get the fourth and final fragment, as well as the remains of a (location marked '''R) which sheds some light on past events and things for you to do. * Return to the tome's location and set the fourth fragment you just found into its cover (another 64 XP, bringing the total to 256), witness what ensues, then head north to gain some experience. Just keep in mind: "no pain, no gain" (in this case more so than ever, and very literally a direct exchange: experience paid for in stamina). Be prepared for some serious hurt and ready with some healing -- anything and everything you think you may need. * Each of the three sets of skull etchings along the northernmost wall will crumble to dust once you've extracted all the experience they can proffer, you just need to keep your heroes alive for the duration. Once there, and the option is offered to you, do not step away if you can survive, or you'll forsake that skull's remaining rewards. (The amount increases each round, and the progression is: 64, 128, 192, 256, 320, 384, and 448 XP to general and to Necromancy.) Damage range recorded during each individual round: min. 1 SP - max. 158 SP. Damage range recorded for each engraving, after 7 consecutive rounds each: min. 255 SP - max. 389 SP. Highest damage total recorded so far after 3 engravings, 7 rounds each: 1,006 SP. The only potential trouble may be the amount of SP damage inflicted during a single round, since it's not percentage-based, so don't take chances you mustn't: heal as necessary. * If your hero did survive all that, you're done; head back up, talk to Vurth Grandarm, give him his key and receive your rewards. Rewards *Varying (small) amounts of combat XP. *64 XP to Necromancy (60+) for using it against the Armoured Skeleton. (Optional.) *A total of 5376 XP to general and 5376 XP to Necromancy, from the engravings. (Optional.) *256 XP to general for setting the 4 Stone Amulet Fragments in place. *1,500 gold tokens final reward. *1,024 general XP final reward. *128 AS&P XP final reward.